NorCal basketball: Mitty shows why it's No. 1, reaches Open final

SAN JOSE — Archbishop Mitty and Salesian College Prep battled tooth and nail through a fast-paced even first half.

After the break, the Monarchs took control behind the multi-talented Haley Jones and ran away for a 75-50 victory in a CIF NorCal Open Division girls basketball semifinal on their home court, before a packed crowd of fans from both teams.

The top-seeded Monarchs, now 29-0 and ranked first in the nation, were led by the 6-foot-1 Jones with 32 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Karisma Ortiz added 10 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals, and paired with Jones on several highlight-reel plays. Freshman Hunter Hernandez scored 14 points and point guard Krissy Miyahara added 12 points, including a trio of 3-pointers.

Fifth-seeded Salesian, paced by 6-5 junior Angel Jackson with 20 points and 11 rebounds, closed its season at 27-6. Anjel Galbraith, Taisia Fleming and Sydni Stewart each added six points for the Pride.

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"Mitty’s a great team," Salesian coach Stephen Pezzola said. "They deserve to be number one in the nation. Haley’s a great player and Karisma is a great player."

The victory moves Mitty into the NorCal final against CCS rival Pinewood on Saturday at 6 p.m. at Santa Clara University.

"It went well tonight," Jones said. "We started out slow. In the third quarter, we had a more aggressive mindset."

Jones was everywhere, scoring both inside and outside, strong on the boards, and solid with ball-handling and defense. She scored seven or more points in each of the four periods.

"Haley is dynamic in the open floor," Mitty coach Sue Phillips said. "Haley and Karisma were fantastic on the boards. Krissy Miyahara knocked down some key 3’s. Haley’s the total package. She plays all five positions on the court. She takes care of the ball, scores, rebounds, and plays defense. She is arguably one of the top recruits in the nation."

Salesian came out cold, hitting just 1-of-13 shots from the floor, and the tally was 18-8 Mitty after one quarter. The Pride settled in during the second period and ran off 10 points in a row to knot the score. Salesian then took brief leads of 22-20 and 24-23 in the middle of the period, before the Monarchs closed with seven points by Jones and a 33-27 advantage at halftime.

"In the first half, we were able to pressure them, get steals and convert," Pezzola said.

Mitty was also dealing with some early foul trouble and an injury to Jones, which put her on the trainer’s table for a short while.

"My left ankle," Jones said. "I landed weird on it. But there is not really any time for injuries. We can’t have any more (with 6-2 senior Nicole Blakes sidelined with a knee injury)."

"Haley’s got an unbelievable pain threshold," Phillips said. "She tweaked it, but then she came back."

Jones returned to the floor in the second quarter, but the Pride was rolling.

"They had us on our heels a bit in the first half," Phillips said. "We needed to regain our composure. We did a great job of going to our bench and using our size and our bench on defending Angel."

That was definitely the case after halftime. Jones and Ortiz began dominating, supported by Mitty’s other starters and a deep bench. Jones scored seven in the third quarter, Ortiz contributed another four points, along with board play, and the freshman Hernandez supplied a big boost. She had not scored in the game’s first 21 minutes, but then exploded with nine points in a decisive late third-quarter burst.

Leading 39-34 with 3:12 remaining in the period, Mitty outscored Salesian 14-6 to close the quarter with a 53-40 margin. The Monarchs maintained the momentum throughout the final stanza.

"In the second half, we pushed and attacked and played at a higher tempo," Jones said. "We were more aggressive on defense against Angel (Jackson). We tried to get her out of the paint, try to force her to her off-hand, and double-down and try to strip."

Jackson had just two buckets in the second half. Mitty outscored the visitors 42-23 in the final two periods, rolling on offense, and stifling the Pride offense.

"I’m proud of my girls," Pezzola said. "I’m sad we lost and for our seniors, but I’m looking forward to next year."

Mitty seeks its 13th NorCal title on Saturday, a rematch of the Monarchs’ recent 76-62 win over Pinewood for the CCS Open crown. The NorCal champ will then play for the state title a week later at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento against the SoCal champion, the victor of the match between Windward-Los Angeles and Clovis West.